Golden Gate Bridge, Muni among holiday weekend transit tussles

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A tourist takes a photo of the Golden Gate Bridge on January 25, 2012 in San Francisco, California. The Golden Gate Bridge, Highway and Transportation District is preparing for the 75th anniversary of the iconic Golden Gate Bridge that will be marked with a festival on May 26 - 27 that will feature music, displays of bridge artifacts and art exhibits. The 1.7 mile steel suspension bridge, one of the modern Wonders of the World, opened to traffic on May 27, 1937.

With landmark anniversary parties, bridge closures, and transit and street shutdowns, the Bay Area is going to be a tough place to navigate over Memorial Day weekend.

The biggest event on tap is the 75th birthday of the Golden Gate Bridge on Sunday. Commemorative celebrations set to take place along Marina Green and Crissy Field are expected to draw tens of thousands of spectators.

However, traffic is likely to be a standstill. Bridge officials are urging participants to either bike, walk or take public transit to the area. Muni and Golden Gate Transit will be running extra service Sunday, and BART will increase its train capacity for the event. The bridge will be closed shortly before, during and immediately after the 9:30 p.m. fireworks display.

Muni will be increasing service for the bridge festivities on the north side of town, but transit on the west side will be scaled back due to a significant construction project.

Starting at 7 p.m. Friday and lasting until 5 a.m. June 4, the work will force the closure of the N-Judah line and partial shutdown of the J-Church line, although those trains will be replaced by bus shuttles. Several bus lines will be detoured and bike and pedestrian pathways will be closed. Commuters are being asked to bike and walk to work to avoid transit delays on Muni.

Lastly, seismic retrofitting work will close down the Dumbarton Bridge in the South Bay between 10 p.m. Friday and 5 a.m. Tuesday.

To deal with all the changes, travelers are being urged to plan ahead and visit the region’s traffic website, transit.511.org, to map out the best routes.